Living With An Old Dog

Truman @ 14.... Well the old boy is still a bit unsteady on his feet & his head is still slightly tilted after his bout with old age vestibular syndrome but he runs, goes up & down stairs, etc. at an age appropriate speed. Truman was extremely agile, athletic & afraid of nothing & he still exhibits those traits however it's obvious it would be easy to knock him off his feet. 

And he still remembers some of his duties, i.e. closing the door behind himself when he comes in & other such things. He still follows commands when I talk quietly into his right ear & follow up w hand signals but he frequently has senior moments which might be mini episodes of some kind where he stops where ever -- could be facing a wall or in the middle of the yard -- & sometimes has to be distracted from his reverie by hand clapping or a slight touch. Given enough time he seems to come out of these 'episodes' by himself so I'm not too worried.

OTOH, his sense of timing remains impeccable. He still wakes me to go out when needed, gets me up @ 5:30 every morning no matter what, reminds me when it's treat time or dinner time. And he still shows some sexual interest in Stella. Of course she just brushes him off like an errant fly.

I must say that I love living with this old gentleman. It's such a privilege for me to be able to give back to him. It's not that he's very demanding but, whatever his needs, I'm prepared to help him as best as I can for the remainder of his life. It's payback time & that sense of obligation is over powering in me. How could it not be so?

At last report, all his organs & vitals are in great shape so, except for the natural aging process, there doesn't seem to be anything special on the horizon.